sources i the itunes store. we're back sunday morning 11:00 eastern for another critical look at the media. "state of the union" candy crowley begins now. # on? what in the world is going on? today an israeli airstrike deep into syria, a suicide bomber at the u.s. embassy in turkey and the president's nominee for pentagon chief gets the third degree. >> i actually would like an answer, yes or no. # >> well, i'm not going to give you a yes or no. >> outstanding defense secretary leon panetta and joint chief chairman general martin dempsey on the hagel hearings, world hot spots and benghazi. >> this is not 911. you can't call in two minutes and expect a team in place. >> then the president's agenda. >> comprehensive immigration reform. prevent something like newtown or oak creek from happening again. >> what about jobs? with former obama policy adviser mellody barnes, former labor

secretary elaine chao and a conversation about football and kids with the mvp of super bowl xl hines ward. i'm candy crowley. this is "state of the union." joining me now leon panetta secretary of defense and martin dempsey, chairman of the chief joint of staff. gentlemen, thank you both for being here. we had very interesting hearings on thursday for your replacement. i want to play you just a little bit from those hearings. >> the iranian's red line, persian gulf, some of the iranian questions you asked, i support the president's strong position on containment. by the way, i've just been handed a note that i misspoke. we don't have a position on containment. >> just to make sure your correction is clear. we do have a position on containment, which is we do not favor containment.

>> we do not favor containment. >> i'm sure you've seen the criticism of the nominee for your new job and your old job and your new boss. how did you think mr. hagel did? >> well, these hearings are tough, especially when everybody is targeting you. i guess i was really disappointed that a lot of that hearing focused on the past as opposed to the challenges that a secretary of defense has to confront. >> you know capitol hill. you got a record. what else do you move on? >> i understand. you also have to talk about what a secretary of defense has to face, a war on afghanistan, we've got sequester problems and budget problems. we've got serious problems in dealing with the challenges in terms of the middle east on cyber. there are a number of areas that simply were not that well covered that deal with what a secretary of defense has to do and that concerned me. >> but nothing concerned -- this

man will be your new boss replacing secretary panetta. is there anything in that hearing that concerned you? there are a lot of folks who thought he just doesn't seem prepared? >> no, i had the same reaction secretary panetta had. i was actually more surprised about what wasn't discussed than what was, and in my context with the senator, senator hagel and his preparations, i found him to be very thoughtful and well well prepared and very interested. so if he's confirmed, i'm sure we'll establish a very close working relationship. >> so you all thought he seemed well prepared? >> i think -- i know chuck hagel. i think he's got good experience with regards to public service. he understands the issues of the defense department. i think he'll be a great secretary of defense. >> i'm going to ask you about signals in washington. general michael hayden, probably both of you know, former director of the cia was talking about

incoming secretary of state john kerry, incoming if he is confirmed secretary of defense chuck hagel and here is what he had to say about the new team. >> i think the new team thinks more like the president thinks when it comes to foreign policy. this is going to be a team that might not push back as much with regard to cuts or withdrawals or smaller footprints or reluctance to go with big footprints into new areas. >> i want you to tell me what your reaction is to that. do you see a new team coming in with a different attitude toward the president's policies? >> no, i really don't. i mean, after all, the president is the person who makes policy with regards to foreign affairs and defense policy. >> sure. but this was about pushback. the suggestion is you all do push back and this team might not. >> well you know, i've got to tell you, anybody who knows john kerry and anybody who knows chuck hagel, i've been with them in meetings and i've been with them in conferences, and i've been with

them on issue debates, they push back. believe me, they push back on the issues. i think in the situation room, everybody has to give their honest views. i think they won't hesitate to give their honest views. >> one of the things where there might be pushback, looking ahead is we're now hearing from some senior types in the white house, that they might not want any troops to remain in afghanistan after 2014. right now, as you're looking at the situation, and you trained troops in afghanistan, for both of you, since you trained troops over there, we never hear very good reports. i think the last sort of official one we saw was that one afghan battalion of all of them was able to work without u.s. ground or air support. are afghan troops and is afghan security and police going to be ready in 2014 to have no u.s. support? >> first of all, i've never heard anyone suggest -- no one has ever suggested zero to me. i think the ultimate number will be based on the mission and how

deeply we want to be involved with their continued development and also what they want, literally what the sovereign nation of afghanistan. wants. john allen has a very well thought out campaign plan. as we look at the different options for both presence after '14 and how we get from here to 14. we're basing it on keeping three things in equilibrium. the campaign objectives laid out in chicago and lisbon with our nato allies, retrograde, we've got a pretty significant challenge of getting ourselves out of afghanistan in terms of equipment and force protection. we'll keep those three things in equilibrium. >> 66,000 troops there now. what sounds to you all like a reasonable number at the end of 2014? what should the afghan government be able to do with how many u.s. troops? >> the most important thing that's happened is that the afghan army has become operational. they've developed their ability to

provide security. we couldn't make a transition in the areas we've made a transition which involve over 75% of the afghan population right now is under afghan control and security. we couldn't do that if there wasn't an afghan army that's was becoming much more capable of doing their job. if we maintain a 352,000 number, which is what we're trying to achieve, if we maintain that -- >> for their forces. >> and they become good, that is going to determine that the level of enduring presence we will have once we reach the end of 2014. >> what's your feel for it now? >> my feel for it now is that the missions that we've accepted post '14 with the afghan government and nato allies, which largely relate to the counter-terror mission, continuing to keep pressure on transnational global terrorism, as well as the continued development of afghan security forces my instinct that their development is moving at a pace and their acceptance and responsibility moving at a pace our numbers at

'14 can be modest. >> what's that? can you give me a number? what's modest? >> no, i can't give you a number, because first of all, i'm not going to announce a number on cnn on sunday afternoon. >> why not? sounds reasonable to me. >> i don't know the number. i really don't. look, we're in the business of negotiating with ourselves and john allen the mission and how best to accomplish it trying to look two years into the future. we really don't have a number selected yet. >> when we return, lingering questions about the attack in benghazi. >> you can't be every place. i might remind you, it was 9/11 elsewhere in the world not just in there. es. i love kiwis. i've always had that issue with the seeds getting under my denture. super poligrip free -- it creates a seal of the dentures in my mouth. even well-fitting dentures let in food particles. super poligrip is zinc free. with just a few dabs, it's clinically proven to seal out more food particles so you're more comfortable and confident while you eat. super poligrip free

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panetta and general dempsey. again, thank you gentlemen for being here. let me ask about benghazi. first, you'll be testifying on capitol hill before you leave office? >> we're working on that right now. they've asked us to testify and we're happy to do that so we probably will have that opportunity. >> one of the outstanding questions out there has been why wasn't there someone to come help? why didn't you -- we know you that you did did move ships closer. we know the air base in sicily, you brought in a strike force. why didn't you in a seven-hour timeframe this took place, why couldn't the strike force have said, even if you didn't know what was going on, just get closer. go as though you're going to go there and we'll let you know what we find out? >> because, very frankly, intelligence did not provide any warning that this, in fact, was going to happen. i mean, we deployed. we knew there were problems

there. # we moved forces into place where we could deploy them quickly if we had to. they were ready to go. very frankly by the time we got the information as to what, in fact, was taking place there, just distance alone made it very difficult to respond quickly. that's just the nature of dealing with the middle east. >> when did you learn, if this was a seven-hour battle, we don't know when people died, when the ambassador died, if this was a seven-hour battle, a u.s. strike force couldn't have gotten there in time to be of some service? >> you know, it wasn't a seven hour battle. it was two 20-minute battle s separated by six hours. the idea this was one continuous event is just incorrect. the nearest -- for example, the nearest armed aircraft, happened to be in djubouti, the distance from there to benghazi is the distance from washington, d.c., to los angeles. there is some significant physics involved and the time

available, given the intelligence available, i have great confidence in reporting to the the american people that we were appropriately responsive given what we knew at the time. >> candy, the answer to these things and we've learned some lessons, obviously, from what happened in benghazi. the answer is you have to develop host country capability there. every embassy we have, the host country has to provide good security. >> you knew libya was really not capable at that point. >> i understand that. but you have to be able to rely in part on their capability to provide security. secondly, you've also got to be able to harden the facility so that it is well protected. and thirdly, if none of that works, then obviously you've got to have a response team that's ready to respond. but to do that, you've got to have intelligence that tells you this is trouble. there's a risk here. >> you had an ambassador telling people there was trouble. >> this is not 911. you cannot just simply call and expect within two minutes to have a team in place.

it takes time. that's the nature of it. our people are there. they are in position to move but we've got to have good intelligence that gives us a heads up something is going to happen. >> the base in italy is close, the air base in italy would have been a closer strike force, right? so again, why wouldn't you, knowing there had been an attack, not knowing how long it was going to go on, why wouldn't you, say, get on a helicopter, get on a plane, get on -- you know, i realize these are sort of basic questions for you. people, couldn't they have seen something there? >> i'm sure we'll have a chance to answer these exact questions thursday when you testify. the fact is we did exactly what you said. as soon as we knew something happened, the secretary gave us vocal instructions to begin moving forces to a higher alert posture and make them with aircraft necessary to move them, and then including the transit time to give them an estimate of how quickly we could have

something there. we did exactly what you said. you can't be every place. i might remind you it was 9/11 elsewhere in the world, not just in libya. >> sure. would you agree that the consulate in benghazi was woefully underprotected? >> i think the secretary of state indicated they should have had more security there. >> would you do anything differently militarily knowing now what you knew went on. >> we have taken the accountability review board results, review especially around that part of the world and we are taking steps. >> would you now in hindsight say we could have, should have, would have sent this group there. we might have been able to do some good if we had done x, y, z. >> no. >> so nothing? you would change nothing? >> look, i think in these situations, you have to look at what we were facing, what we knew, what intelligence we had in order to respond. admittedly, better intelligence

about what was taking place there would have given us a head start. >> why isn't there better intelligence? it's not like the intelligence community is underfunded. seems like any time we come into something that's a tragedy, it's always the intelligence community. you've been there. >> i was director of the cia. >> exactly. >> so seems like it's always the cia's fault. >> i say this without demeaning our efforts at intelligence, but the fact is we -- there are areas in the middle east where we do not have the kind of intelligence we should have in order to give us a heads up about these kinds of attacks. that's a reality. we've got to do better at this. >> and you're discounting the number of things we do avoid with good intelligence. >> obviously for a lot of reasons we don't always hear about those. let me ask you about the israel strike, you've been to syria. did you know about that in advance. did anyone say bad idea, good idea? or was it just -- i know you were meeting with head of the israeli intelligence forces. were you all informed? >> i'm not going to discuss the

details of what happened or didn't happen there. what i will say is this, that we are concerned about the danger of sophisticated weapons like sa 17s and cbw, chemical and biological weapons falling into the hands of terrorists. that is something we're concerned about. we do planning every day to try to make sure that we're in a position where we can make sure that doesn't happen. >> the israeli officer about whom you speak was in my office in preparation for a meeting with my counterpart from israel and not in any way related to that incident that was reported. >> i'm assuming if you weren't informed you would tell me, so the reverse is true. so you talked about the groundwork being laid. everyone talks about how assad surely will fall at some point. when that happens, how does the u.s. make sure that al qaeda, or other terrorist organizations that might be loosely

affiliated, don't get ahold of chemical wasn't, don't begin with all the weapons there, what happened in libya in some cases, what that is groundwork like? >> well, i think what you'd want to -- what you'd expect us to be doing is teaming, collaborating and planning with partners in the region. we have nato in the north and turkey a very strong partner in jordan. of course we mentioned israel to the west, all of whom share common interests in making sure these spillover effects don't affect them. that's what we're doing. we're planning. we've got options for any number of military contingencies. we're maintaining both a deterrent and preparedness posture. >> do the military contingencies include u.s. forces or something you see as a regional thing, securing the ground as it were in syria? >> we are better when we operate with partners, especially in that part of the world. of course any option we would

probably be asked to provide at least the capabilities no one else has. we have some extraordinary capabilities. >> that's intelligence gathering would be one of them. what about the use of force, the use of forces i guess? >> a lot depends on what the situation is. if assad suddenly comes down, is it is a permissive situation where there's a peaceful transition to another form of government which would be a different situation than a hostile situation where there's chaos. we've got to be able to plan for every contingency in order to be able to ensure we are taking steps to protect that cbw so it doesn't fall into the wrong hands and try to ensure the other weapons don't fall into the wrong hands. >> let me talk about niger. northern africa becoming a hot spot. i was talking to someone in the intelligence community who said we don't know if this is the last refuge of al qaeda or a beach head. which is it?

is this where al qaeda is beginning to gather? are we paying enough attention or is this sort of a last gasp, like the last place they can go? >> you have to look at the whole picture on al qaeda. we've gone after core leadership in the fatah in afghanistan, gone after them in yemen, successfully in somalia. we were always aware there was aqim in north africa and now we're focusinged on aqim as a result of the french action. we were also anticipating we would have to move into north africa to go after al qaeda. wherever they are, we have to make sure they have no place to hide. bottom line here is al qaeda is our enemy and we have to make sure we go after them. >> let me just finally, i want to play you something from your predecessor as he was leaving office. >> any future defense secretary who advises the president to again send a big american land army into asia or into the middle east or africa should

have his head examined as general macarthur so delicately put it. >> first of all, do you agree with your predecessor on that. second of all, give us your final thought as you prepare for at least the last month or so of your tenure? >> my sense is that the defense of this country has to be prepared to respond to any contingency. i wouldn't rule out any action the president of the united states might decide needs to be taken against any crisis. so while i understand the concerns that bob had, i just would not rule out any option in today's world. we face a lot of threats today. i feel as secretary of defense i've been honored to serve at the department of defense. we have the strongest military power on earth, and we're dealing with a lot of threats in today's world. the biggest concern i have quite frankly right now is the budget uncertainty on capitol hill. because if the sequester is allowed to go into effect, i

think it could seriously impact on the readiness of the united states and that's a serious issue. >> i would assume you agree with those parting words. >> i couldn't agree more. we face a true readiness crisis. >> gentlemen, thank you so much for being with me. thank you both very much. >> thank you. if hagel is confirmed, pan, -- panetta is a happy short timer. i asked him about a departure date. he indicated he'd be home in california on or before valentine's day. when we return in his first term president obama focused on health care, some thought to the detriment of the economy. is he in danger of making the same mistake twice. later, could a piece of equipment from the nfl's past protect players from today. -- protect its players today. list of almost two thousand corporate partners - companies like microsoft, american red cross and adobe - to create options for you. not only that, we're using what we learn from these partners

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the economy, domestic policy and republican head winds with the hill's a.b. stoddard, former bush labor secretary elaine chao, former adviser melody

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then you're going to love this. right now they're only $14.95! wow-a grt deal just got a whole lot better. hurry. $14.95 won't last. i'm joined now by the hill's newspaper associate editor a.b. stoddard, former labor secretary elaine chao, melody barnes, and times magazine mike duffy. what we've heard gun control and now immigration reform and yet kind of rearing its ugly head this week has been the economy. we've seen that at least the figures we have now, show that the economy actually shrank in the last quarter of last year. we see consumer confidence down and the slight uptick in the unemployment figures in january, the economy still adds jobs, still not

enough to dig into the unemployment rate. does the president pursue immigration and gun control at the risk of not focusing on the economy? >> i think the president has to take on all of these challenges. >> he didn't in the first -- in the first term when he took on health care, everybody said why isn't he focusing on jobs? >> a focus on health care is the economy and jobs as is immigration reform. if you aren't able to juggle many balls at the same time, you also aren't able to be president of the united states. so what we saw this past week is the reality that political risk is the biggest threat to our economy right now. the president and congress have to take that on. congress has to decide how they are going to move forward and to sequester or not. i think that was put in place as a way to try and push people towards the table. hopefully they will come and join the president in doing that but he's got a multifaceted agenda and we have to move forward if we're going to stabilize the economy and move forward on growth. >> a lot of things we were told

the president didn't get to such as immigration reform, he says i had to focus on the economy. as immigration reform, i had to nonetheless, elaine, let me let you get in on this, that is does the president -- he says it's really the republicans that are standing in the way of what he'd like to do in the economy? >> i don't know how he can say that when he had control of both the houses in the legislative branch. he had control over the white house. >> he doesn't know. >> in 2010. >> yeah. >> he was able to get sweeping changes through to our economy, which actually including, for example, obama care and also dodd/frank which had hampering effects. >> frank dodd regulation on businesses. >> they are having a dampening effect on job creation. i'm actually rather surprised that in his state of the union -- his inaugural address, there was not a more magnanimous spirit shown, not more of a graciousness, to focus on reaching out to the other side to work together. he uses the words.

he uses the word but if you look at the agenda it's a far left agenda items. look at the numbers report of this past friday i don't know how anybody can say that was a good report. i think the president has to focus on job creation. he cannot do everything at one time. clearly job creation is far less than what we expect. >> is there a job creation out there anyone on capitol hill at this point? >> not at the moment, other than the broad economy. which is generally improving. >> the budget and he sequestration. >> this is a week, the fourth quarter went down, but the stock market also hit 14,000. >> budget. there's some buoyancy in the economy that certainly wasn't there last year. this is super sunday, candy. i think the way to explain the political cosmos at the moment -- >> good, a football analogy. >> i know you were going to beat me to this football metaphor. both parties are reading from different play books. in the first four years the republicans tried to stop pretty much everything the president did. whether they won or lost, they won politically.

that was good policy for them. not so clear on the second term, immigration, guns, whether a blocking the president's strategy is going to be a political win. i kind of think the public is with him, you can see that in the polls. this is kind of a golden hour for any second term president, the first year, he has a lot of clout, capital, and a lot of room to spend it. we'll see how he does. >> a.b., is the economy, the president said it's recovering. is it something he can look away from? >> no. i think it's going to be a difficult balance for him. he needs to continue talking about the economy. if you look at the numbers for this week, it's very disturbing just in anticipation of the defense cuts in the sequester we saw a shrinkage in defense spending. it's going to have a considerable dent to consumer demand if this sequester goes through. that is going to be tough for the president to deal with. at the same time because of what michael says the public is with him on these issues, there's a

magic moment for immigration reform right now and maybe gun control. those are issues you have to push very hard on and can't lose focus on. those senate democrats up for re-election in red states who he's asking for help on those two issues are going to say come april if these numbers continue to deteriorate you have to know what you're doing on jobs. you have to talk to americans about the economy. >> before we take a break here, tell me quickly, what is there to be done about the economy that involves congress at this point? >> i think a lot has to be done by the executive branch. i mean, basically the unemployment rate of 7.9% is deceptively low. we have over 8.5 million discouraged workers who have left the workforce. basically we have long-term unemployed americans who have been out of work for more than 26 weeks. there's lots of things this government can do, this administration can do to not hamper job creation. 157,000 net new jobs are created. that's not enough. we need 250,000 net new jobs created every month. >> melody, you're next, i

promise, we have to take a quick break. when we return, the vice president makes no promise on curbing gun violence. >> nothing we're going to do is going to fundamentally alter or eliminate the possibility of another mass shooting or guarantee that we will bring gun deaths down to 1,000 a year from what it is now. d here today to celebrate the union of tim and laura. it's amazing how appreciative people are when you tell them they could save a lot of money on their car insurance by switching to geico...they may even make you their best man. may i have the rings please? ah, helzberg diamonds. nice choice, mate. ...and now in the presence of these guests we join this loving couple. oh dear... geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. how did i know? well, i didn't really. see, i figured low testosterone would decrease my sex drive...

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we are back with our panel. i wanted to give melody barnes, former adviser to president obama, a chance just to push back a little if you want about the president and the economy. because although he says the republicans are standing in my way, there doesn't seem to be much he's pushing. >> i will say this, two things. one, the president has been and will continue to be focused on the economy and job creation. he's been focused on it since day one. that's why 6.1 million jobs over the last 35 months. that's why we see construction going up, housing prices going up, manufacturing going up. >> it's a weak recovery still. >> it isn't a weak recovery. that's why, because of its

fragility that's why we have to focus on not getting a sequester the republicans seem to be leaning to but in fact targeted investments and targeted cuts. that directly relates to immigration. this is an economic issue. we're not going to deport 5% of our workforce. we have to make sure we work with business that wants us and agriculture community that wants it, in addition to the immigration advocates. >> the financial issue with fiscal cliff. the president had no leadership to the issue. it was republicans who reached out to the vice president. >> let's move on because i am intrigued by joe biden's remarks up on capitol hill. you know, nothing we are going to do is fundamentally going to alter the possibility of another mass shooting. i think we all understand that nothing is foolproof. or he says, can we guarantee we're going to bring gun deaths down. this does not seem to me to be a great sales job. >> i think he's speaking the truth. i mean, this has been a horrible issue. i think there's a great deal of bipartisan concern on this

issue. joe biden has a habit of sometimes speaking what's politically incorrect. we hope what will happen is we'll come into a better society. we need to enforce existing laws about gun control and we are not doing that right now. >> you can hear the ice cracking on one piece of this, which is the background checks. two or three weeks ago it wasn't there. i think you can now see they may be able to get the votes, not on banning the sale of assault weapons but there appears to be concern partly because the president has been so far pretty smart about organizing, not a long way from over. they may get the background checks at the gun shows that will leave other loopholes in place for the sale of these weapons. it's possible there would be some -- >> right. what do we see the prospects of -- i tend to agree here, that you sort of hear that possibly background checks at

gun sales is doable but not a lot else. >> that's true. that's the only area of consensus and it will still take an incredible amount of political will and the fight to get over the finishing line with background checks. in the south, particularly in a culture of guns, they are given as gifts to each other. many of them will not be checked. that's the one area you see it polling extremely well. i think the president will push hard on it. >> let me play for you real quick a super bowl ad that's going to play this afternoon. >> the nra once supported background checks. >> we think it's reasonable to provide mandatory instant criminal background checks for every sale at every gun show. no loopholes anywhere for anyone. >> america can do this. for us. >> this also leads me to believe the mayors who do want assault

weapons ban, leads me to believe that's where they think their strength is. >> becoming a campaign -- >> exactly. last thing i want to move you to immigration. an editorial had this to say, talking about marco rubio, he being one of those who put together this compromise bill on capitol hill. rubio is wrong about how to go about repairing our immigration system, wrong to think amnesty and enforcement bill at this time will end up being anything other than the unbuttered side of a half a loaf deal and there is no reason to make a bad deal for fear of losing a latino vote republicans never had. i think this is emblematic for what i'm hearing republican pushback, time for immigration reform. we're going to do it, going to do it, the last week has been, wait a second, not this bill. >> maybe it's happening that quickly. i think this is going to go on all year long. when we get to fights, the fights are going to be really ugly about the details.

just a real quick example. let's say you let five to ten million americans become citizens, when do you let them vote? this election, next election? how many. an interesting fight. just as ugly as guns. >> the reality is there is a broad coalition that supports this. the chamber, the business community, the agriculture community. you see republicans -- elaine's former boss is supportive of this and his brother. i think that is what's going to push us forward because our system is pathetic and broken and hurting our economy not to mention the families. >> melody barns, i have to cut you off. i'm sorry. come back next time. more time. thank you so much. >> president obama said if he had a son, he'd -- he's not sure he would let him play football. hines ward, super bowl xl's most valuable player has an old-school approach that may reduce concussions. we'll talk to him next. i have low testosterone. there, i said it.

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he was voted the most valuable player in super bowl xl when his pittsburgh steelers bested seattle seahawks and won another ring in the super bowl three years later. when he retired after the 2011 season he traded in his cleats for a pair of dancing shoes and

won season 12 of "dancing with the stars." joining me now hines ward former pittsburgh steelers. -- wide receiver for the pittsburgh steelers. thank you for bringing some of your expertise to us this morning, we really appreciate it. let me ask you, i know you have said, if players returned to leather helmets of days gone by, there would be fewer brain injuries. but they went from leather helmets to the ones you've got now to ameliorate the possibility of skull fractures. so you're trading one injury for another. >> well, i was trying to be sarcastic in that sense. if you really love the game and you're so passionate about it, if you put on a leather helmet, maybe it would give you a different way to not lead with your head, to be able to tackle using your shoulders and your arms to bring a guy down. i think that's been the main cause of concussions is guys leading with their helmets. >> right. you know, you yourself have both delivered hits and taken hits.

i know, as you do, that the nfl players' association -- i'm sorry, your peers voted you one of the dirties players in nfl history. this was post to time you delivered a blindside hit and broke another player's jaw. you've seen this from both sides. do you think you can change the rules, whether it's helmets or any other kind of rule to fundamentally change a game that has gotten more brutal, faster, all of these degrees. do you think you can really change the game? >> you can change into the sense where you implement rules to teach guys how to go out and tackle people. when you have two grown men that are big, fast, going full speed ahead and they collide, it's inevitable for your brain to shake a little bit. so when you have concussions, concussions will arise. when you have two grown men colliding with each other. >> the president gave an

interview to the new republic and hes had this to say, i tend to be more worried about college players than nfl players in the sense that the nfl players have a union, they're grown men, they can make some of these decisions on their own and most of them are well compensated for the violence they do to their bodies. >> do you agree with that? >> yes, to an extent, because in college, they don't have the organization to look out for their best interests. everything is about money. when you make it into the nfl, it's engrained in us as rookies that players say to other players, you can't make the club in the tub. meaning, you can't be in the training room if you want to make the team. then from coaches saying have you ever heard about wally pipp the story about wally, where he had headaches and now lou gehrig comes into the lineup and that's the last you hear about wally pipp. when you hear these stories going into the nfl why would you be honest and tell doctors you have a concussion, and trying to

do the right thing? for players, they want to stay on the field and make as much money as they possibly can because you know the nfl is a short period of time. >> so, do you think that the nfl, itself, ought to do something about these head injuries. change the rules or not? do you think you're grown men, make your own decisions. you want to get concussions that could lead to severe memory losses, so be it. >> well, that is true. as players, we know what we sign up for. the nfl is not for everybody. of course, you can play college football, but you have grown men out here playing football. for the nfl, they're trying to do the right thing. just that football is a violent sport. as a football player, we know what we sign up for. i just wish that us knowing about it that the nfl can do something on the back end with providing guys for lifetime insurance for life. so, when they're able to leave the game 5, 10, 15 years after they left the game that they still have necessity insurance to go out and get the proper help that's needed. >> let me ask you. the president also said, hey, if

i had a son, i would think long and hard about letting him play football. i know you have a son. would you think long and hard about encouraging him to play football? >> well, i mean, that's a difficult thing. it would be hard for me to tell my son not to go after his dreams. for me, i always dreamed about playing in the nfl and i know how dangerous it is. so, if my son, who walks around with the football said, dad, i want to play in the nfl. of course, i will give him knowledge about the concussions and what not and be honest with me. but it's hard for me to tell a child not to go after his dreams and not to play in the nfl. >> finally, let me ask you. we have some players currently on the field and certainly a lot of players that have retired that said, yes, they suffered memory losses. have you noticed anything about yourself, having taken as many hits as you have? >> no. they say you usually find signs 10, 15 years after you're done. you know, my body is going through a shock that i played football my whole life and now

i'm no longer doing that. i have to change-up my regimen and my body is like, hold on, you're not playing in the nfl any more. that's an adjustment itself but knock on wood, so far so good. >> i need a two-word answer, who is going to win tonight? >> it hurts me to say this, but i think baltimore. >> thank you so much, hines ward, we really appreciate your time this morning. >> thank you. no problem. when we return on this super bowl sunday, the intersection of politics and football.

and finally, are you ready for some football? us, too. but before we go, we got to thinking, politics and football, they're not so different, you know. george allen is the namesake and the son of a hall of famer football coach. >> my father never had a losing season in the nfl, but he got fired a lot. >> allen grew up around football, but grew older in politics. >> and so i went into something that was just much more stable and predictable, politics. >> with less taxation, less litigation. >> a congressman, a governor, a

senator, allen like his father won more than he lost but he got fired, too. >> in this season, the people of virginia who i always call the owners of the government, they have spoken. >> in between his last two senate losses allen fused his worlds in a 2010 book, a defense of conservatism "what washington can learn from the world of sports." when you ask, like a seasoned pro, allen can find analogies everywhere. a president dominating the political league and looking to run up the score. >> but clearly president obama has an agenda. >> we, the people -- >> and it's one that he wants to get as many of those touchdown scored on those plays that he wants to run as possible. >> a republican party hampered by too many penalties. >> if you dawdle, you get a penalty. they need to be moving the ball down the field. delay of game seems to be the course of conduct. >> when george allen looks at

pro quarterback colin kaepernick >> he diddent go to a southeast conference team or pac 10 team, he goes to nevada, reno, passed over in the draft by many other teams, and now here he is with an extraordinary talent leading the 49ers into the super bowl and he's my pick to be the mvp. >> he sees florida republican senator marco rubio. >> he ran for the u.s. senate. he was running against the governor in his own party. so, it was kind of a, you know, insurgent upstart approach to have the temerity to actually think that he could knock off the governor, which he, obviously, did for the nomination and won. >> despite the similarities, allen has a clear preference. his book jacket notes, the reason you like sports more than politics is because sports makes sense and washington doesn't. okay, now, are you ready for some football? thank you so much for watching "state of the union." i'm candy crowley in washington.